Sarah Palin gets new trial in libel case against the New York Times

Palin's political action committee had published a graphic with crosshairs over Democratic congressional districts in 2010, and a 2017 graphic New York Times The editorial linked it to Giffords' near-death.

The newspaper said it “quickly” corrected the article and apologized, but Palin filed suit against the paper, alleging it had damaged her reputation. The trial began, and Judge Jed Rakoff dismissed the suit before the federal jury in New York City reached a verdict. Although the jury was eventually allowed to reach a verdict in February 2022 (that the newspaper was not liable), Palin argued the jury may have been influenced by the judge's dismissal.

The former vice presidential candidate appealed, also arguing that the judge improperly omitted evidence. On Wednesday, a federal appeals court found several flaws in the first trial and ordered a retrial.

“Unfortunately, several key issues in the trial call into question the reliability of this verdict – notably, the erroneous exclusion of evidence, an inaccurate jury instruction, a legally erroneous answer to a jury question during deliberation, and the fact that the jury learned of the district court's Rule 50 dismissal decision during deliberations,” the opinion said.

In its opinion Wednesday, the appeals court agreed with Palin's opinion that Rakoff “wrongly disregarded or discredited her evidence of actual malice and improperly substituted his own verdict for that of the jury.”

Palin’s lawyer Shane Vogt said in a statement that Palin was “very pleased” with the decision:

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“Governor Palin is very pleased with today's decision, which represents a significant step forward in the process of holding publishers accountable for content that misleads readers and the public at large. The truth deserves a level playing field, and Governor Palin looks forward to presenting her case to a jury 'armed with the necessary evidence and properly instructed on the law,' as stated in the Second Circuit Court of Appeals' opinion.”

The New York Times said in a statement on Wednesday: “This decision is disappointing. We are confident that we will succeed in a retrial.”